$1100: Aliexpress Dahua setup vs Qsee vs Swann

[perrin 0]

I have three options on the table (and am certainly open to suggestions as to others). Opinions on the best choice?

 

Environment: Isolated home site, several attempted breakins, burglaries. Woods on three sides. Three doors, wraparound porch, two door under the porch.

 

Desired coverage: View of ingress on all sides of the home with bullet cams, coverage of two main doors under wraparound porch with enough resolution for face recog

 

Conditions: Acceptable resolution and clarity day and night.

 

 

Option 1:

 

a) Order individual dahua cameras from aliexpress: 4x IPC-HFW2100 for the ingress areas around the home, 2 IPC-HDW2100 for each wing of the wraparound porch

b) Buy an 8 port POE switch

c) Run Blueiris on existing i5 home server which runs 24/7 already with 8tb dedicated to camera array

 

Price: roughly 1100 after buying the cabling and the switch and shipping

 

Option 2:

 

a) Buy the 4 channel, 4 bullet camera Qsee 720P NVR from Costco: http://www.costco.com/Q-See-4-Channel-HD-Digital-NVR-with-1TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-HD-720p-IP-Cameras.product.100003211.html

b) buy single dome camera to try to cover both wings of the porch

c) buy new 3.6mm lenses for all bullet cams to expand FOV

 

Price: 850

 

Limitations: limited coverage on porch due to single dome camera, inability to ever use more than 4 cameras due to NVR limitation

 

Option 3:

 

a) Buy Swann 1080P 8 channel, 4 camera setup from costco: http://www.costco.com/Swann-8-Channel-HD-NVR-Security-System-with-2TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-1080p-IP-Cameras.product.100027599.html

b) Install 4 bullets at first, wait for Swann to come out with dome cameras, expand?

 

Price: 899

 

Limitations: 8 true POE ports on NVR for expansion, limited reviews of system thus far, unknown future camera availibility

[buellwinkle 0]

Sam' club has the same Q-See system as Costco but gives you an 8 channel NVR with cameras I believe for $100 more.

 

The Q-See domes are day only, I thought you wanted to see at night.

 

The Swann has double the resolution as the Q-See but it's an unknown where we already know the Q-See mini bullets do leave something to be desired. Costco offers 90 satisfaction warranty, get both and see which one is better, return the one you don't like.

 

If price is a criteria, get IPSCam or Aote, less expensive than Dahua. If going with a known entity is important, Geovision, Vivotek, ACTi are known brands from Taiwan that have been around a while and may not be that much more expensive.

[perrin 0]

Sam' club has the same Q-See system as Costco but gives you an 8 channel NVR with cameras I believe for $100 more.

 

The Q-See domes are day only, I thought you wanted to see at night.

 

The Swann has double the resolution as the Q-See but it's an unknown where we already know the Q-See mini bullets do leave something to be desired. Costco offers 90 satisfaction warranty, get both and see which one is better, return the one you don't like.

 

If price is a criteria, get IPSCam or Aote, less expensive than Dahua. If going with a known entity is important, Geovision, Vivotek, ACTi are known brands from Taiwan that have been around a while and may not be that much more expensive.

 

unfortunately the 8 channel qsee nvr is only POE on 4 channels. Leaves me with a 4 POE camera limit, and id like to stick with POE cameras as best possible. I looked at that, seemed a good option until i saw that.

 

Hmm, as to the Qsee domes, you are right... i assumed they were the equivalent dahua IR model, theyre not, theyre the lesser day only model. Wonder if i can tie a dahua IR dome into the Qsee NVR.

 

Hadnt heard of IPScam or Aote, looking into those now, recommendations on models? Looks like theyre heavily chinese only so not a lot of resources available unless oyu have the right terms.

[perrin 0]

I wish we knew more about the Swann's. The likelyhood that at least the bullets are hikvision raptors seems pretty high, ultimately it would be nice to find a software NVR solution that supported those.

[buellwinkle 0]

Just do it, what do you have to lose? You don't like it, return it to Costco.

[perrin 0]

Yep, guess thats the benefit of costco.

 

Went with the swanns, with two additional bullets for a total of 6. Bullets arent ideal for the enclosed porch space, but ill see if i can position them someplace thatll work.

 

Will provide full feedback and videos from the bullets in the thread, including night videos once they arrive.

[shockwave199 0]

I didn't hear any mention of your exterior lighting situation. If you have decent lighting at every camera location, I would have gone for the non IR domes. They're not only day. Given decent exterior light, they should give you a very nice picture. If this is truly an isolated residence, your gonna have to battle through webs on your IR cameras. Why everyone seems willing to go backwards with MP cameras with IR built in is a mystery to me. They're not good on analog cameras and they certainly won't be good on MP cameras- and you'll see the PIA webs in much better resolution at a much higher price tag. The principle does not change with MP cameras- avoid IR in the camera. I'd only do the IR bullets currently available with these packages if there was no other way to provide exterior light, period. Spiders find IR....fast.

[dexterash 0]

I have three options on the table (and am certainly open to suggestions as to others). Opinions on the best choice?

 

Environment: Isolated home site, several attempted breakins, burglaries. Woods on three sides. Three doors, wraparound porch, two door under the porch.

 

Desired coverage: View of ingress on all sides of the home with bullet cams, coverage of two main doors under wraparound porch with enough resolution for face recog

 

Conditions: Acceptable resolution and clarity day and night.

 

 

Option 1:

 

a) Order individual dahua cameras from aliexpress: 4x IPC-HFW2100 for the ingress areas around the home, 2 IPC-HDW2100 for each wing of the wraparound porch

b) Buy an 8 port POE switch

c) Run Blueiris on existing i5 home server which runs 24/7 already with 8tb dedicated to camera array

 

Price: roughly 1100 after buying the cabling and the switch and shipping

 

Option 2:

 

a) Buy the 4 channel, 4 bullet camera Qsee 720P NVR from Costco: http://www.costco.com/Q-See-4-Channel-HD-Digital-NVR-with-1TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-HD-720p-IP-Cameras.product.100003211.html

b) buy single dome camera to try to cover both wings of the porch

c) buy new 3.6mm lenses for all bullet cams to expand FOV

 

Price: 850

 

Limitations: limited coverage on porch due to single dome camera, inability to ever use more than 4 cameras due to NVR limitation

 

Option 3:

 

a) Buy Swann 1080P 8 channel, 4 camera setup from costco: http://www.costco.com/Swann-8-Channel-HD-NVR-Security-System-with-2TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-1080p-IP-Cameras.product.100027599.html

b) Install 4 bullets at first, wait for Swann to come out with dome cameras, expand?

 

Price: 899

 

Limitations: 8 true POE ports on NVR for expansion, limited reviews of system thus far, unknown future camera availibility

Have you included a "remote" store/backup soution? Also what happens if the power goes down? Or one of your cameras gets cut? do you want to alert anyone/you?

[perrin 0]

I didn't hear any mention of your exterior lighting situation. If you have decent lighting at every camera location, I would have gone for the non IR domes. They're not only day. Given decent exterior light, they should give you a very nice picture. If this is truly an isolated residence, your gonna have to battle through webs on your IR cameras. Why everyone seems willing to go backwards with MP cameras with IR built in is a mystery to me. They're not good on analog cameras and they certainly won't be good on MP cameras- and you'll see the PIA webs in much better resolution at a much higher price tag. The principle does not change with MP cameras- avoid IR in the camera. I'd only do the IR bullets currently available with these packages if there was no other way to provide exterior light, period. Spiders find IR....fast.

poor lighting all around, so looks like i may have made the right choice. Im there often enough to keep the bugs off, ill have to make a point to do that though and i appreciate the advice

[perrin 0]

I have three options on the table (and am certainly open to suggestions as to others). Opinions on the best choice?

 

Environment: Isolated home site, several attempted breakins, burglaries. Woods on three sides. Three doors, wraparound porch, two door under the porch.

 

Desired coverage: View of ingress on all sides of the home with bullet cams, coverage of two main doors under wraparound porch with enough resolution for face recog

 

Conditions: Acceptable resolution and clarity day and night.

 

 

Option 1:

 

a) Order individual dahua cameras from aliexpress: 4x IPC-HFW2100 for the ingress areas around the home, 2 IPC-HDW2100 for each wing of the wraparound porch

b) Buy an 8 port POE switch

c) Run Blueiris on existing i5 home server which runs 24/7 already with 8tb dedicated to camera array

 

Price: roughly 1100 after buying the cabling and the switch and shipping

 

Option 2:

 

a) Buy the 4 channel, 4 bullet camera Qsee 720P NVR from Costco: http://www.costco.com/Q-See-4-Channel-HD-Digital-NVR-with-1TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-HD-720p-IP-Cameras.product.100003211.html

b) buy single dome camera to try to cover both wings of the porch

c) buy new 3.6mm lenses for all bullet cams to expand FOV

 

Price: 850

 

Limitations: limited coverage on porch due to single dome camera, inability to ever use more than 4 cameras due to NVR limitation

 

Option 3:

 

a) Buy Swann 1080P 8 channel, 4 camera setup from costco: http://www.costco.com/Swann-8-Channel-HD-NVR-Security-System-with-2TB-Hard-Drive-and-4-1080p-IP-Cameras.product.100027599.html

b) Install 4 bullets at first, wait for Swann to come out with dome cameras, expand?

 

Price: 899

 

Limitations: 8 true POE ports on NVR for expansion, limited reviews of system thus far, unknown future camera availibility

Have you included a "remote" store/backup soution? Also what happens if the power goes down? Or one of your cameras gets cut? do you want to alert anyone/you?

 

battery backed alarm will let me know if the power goes out. If someone is motivated to start knocking down cameras, im pretty much screwed anyway. This isnt to deter/capture hardened criminals with an agenda. Its to provide evidence (if they smash a camera, theyre already on video) and to warn me.

[shockwave199 0]

If someone is motivated to start knocking down cameras, im pretty much screwed anyway. This isnt to deter/capture hardened criminals with an agenda. Its to provide evidence (if they smash a camera, theyre already on video) and to warn me.

Not all email/picture attachment alerts are created equal from unit to unit. It's best to get an eyeball on the user manual for your chosen nvr system when you're deciding. You want to make sure it sends video loss emails with picture attachment. A lot of units only attach a picture with motion events- probably the worst of the choices for outdoor cameras because of email flooding. I do email notification with picture attachment for two types of events for outdoor cameras- video loss and power loss. That way, if someone takes out a camera I get a picture of them right before they do it. It's also a good idea to install a camera right by the nvr and aim it for a mug shot. That way if the suspect decides to walk away with the nvr thinking he stole all the evidence too, you'll have an email picture of the video loss & power loss as well- a nice mug shot right at the nvr.

 

I also wish EVERY dvr/nvr manufacturer would make email/picture attachment for video/power loss standard.

 

For a vaction or remote residence I wasn't always at, this would be SOP for me and the install.

[cctv_down_under 0]

You actually had 4 options

 

4/ Buy a decent product from a propoer installer instead of cheap nasty product

[cctvmann 0]

You actually had 4 options

 

4/ Buy a decent product from a propoer installer instead of cheap nasty product

+1

[perrin 0]

If someone is motivated to start knocking down cameras, im pretty much screwed anyway. This isnt to deter/capture hardened criminals with an agenda. Its to provide evidence (if they smash a camera, theyre already on video) and to warn me.

Not all email/picture attachment alerts are created equal from unit to unit. It's best to get an eyeball on the user manual for your chosen nvr system when you're deciding. You want to make sure it sends video loss emails with picture attachment. A lot of units only attach a picture with motion events- probably the worst of the choices for outdoor cameras because of email flooding. I do email notification with picture attachment for two types of events for outdoor cameras- video loss and power loss. That way, if someone takes out a camera I get a picture of them right before they do it. It's also a good idea to install a camera right by the nvr and aim it for a mug shot. That way if the suspect decides to walk away with the nvr thinking he stole all the evidence too, you'll have an email picture of the video loss & power loss as well- a nice mug shot right at the nvr.

 

I also wish EVERY dvr/nvr manufacturer would make email/picture attachment for video/power loss standard.

 

For a vaction or remote residence I wasn't always at, this would be SOP for me and the install.

The Swann System I ended up with (which just came in today, im doing a full writeup) has both video loss, and power loss alarm conditions, which is nice. You can send the last X amount of footage, or snapshots thereof on any alarm condition.

[perrin 0]

You actually had 4 options

 

4/ Buy a decent product from a propoer installer instead of cheap nasty product

 

Well, at least a number of productive posts came in before the elitism.

 

Yes, there are far better products, which cost far more. I would be glad to install a better system, if you would be glad to send me another 2-4k dollars

[dexterash 0]

As a simple question...

How much does the house cost? Or what you are after for securing?

Could you make an insurance? How big would that be?

 

If insurance is too big, revert to video. How much would you spend on video, in the case you want to self-insure?

 

When you get an insurance, you know what are the ups and downs of the system. You know what you opt-in for and what you opt-out for.

 

When you self install a system, you are your own insurer. If something happens, you are responsable. You opted for those equipments.

[cctv_down_under 0]

Elitism huh?

 

Thats a new one, the thing I think many are missing here is that - the branded products are not that much more expensive, its just that you have not looked - personally if its going to be an extra $30 per camera to get a brand like samsung - I know what I would be doing, I would hate the asset that I was protecting to be lost or hurt, just becasue I wanted to save $30 a camera

 

sorry but YumCha - Da** - or whatever you call it is cheap and will not last long, so what you save now you will pay again ina few years

[Kawboy12R 0]

I hear you on buying quality but where do you get Samsung cameras for even twice what a Dahua costs? Samsung SNO-5080R 1.3mp bullets are about $550 where Dahuas are $150? Jump to 3mp varifocals and the price difference is less, but $30? I don't point this out to cut you down, I'd just really love to know where you're getting your Samsungs. Pricegrabber, Amazon, and BHPhotovideo obviously aren't the places.

[cctv_down_under 0]

Actually u are right..I was talking analogue not ip cam...

[Kawboy12R 0]

I agree with you more on the Samsung analog cams. Not terribly expensive and I like the video I've seen from them. Good value.